Baxter Bros Inc. Lowers Stock Position in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Baxter Bros Inc. decreased its stake in McDonald's Co. (NYSE:MCD - Free Report) by 18.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 11,609 shares of the fast-food giant's stock after selling 2,632 shares during the period. Baxter Bros Inc.'s holdings in McDonald's were worth $3,365,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MCD. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in McDonald's during the fourth quarter valued at $703,074,000. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its position in shares of McDonald's by 542.9% during the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 801,858 shares of the fast-food giant's stock valued at $244,174,000 after buying an additional 677,139 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of McDonald's by 43,591.6% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 590,711 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $171,241,000 after acquiring an additional 589,359 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of McDonald's by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 70,169,342 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $20,341,391,000 after acquiring an additional 526,466 shares during the period. Finally, Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI increased its holdings in McDonald's by 518.1% in the 4th quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 348,119 shares of the fast-food giant's stock worth $100,916,000 after acquiring an additional 291,802 shares during the last quarter. 70.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

McDonald's Stock Performance

MCD traded down $5.74 on Friday, hitting $306.95. 3,211,501 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,500,063. McDonald's Co. has a 12 month low of $243.53 and a 12 month high of $326.32. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $301.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $298.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $219.31 billion, a PE ratio of 26.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.71.

McDonald's (NYSE:MCD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 10th. The fast-food giant reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $2.83. McDonald's had a net margin of 31.73% and a negative return on equity of 181.63%. On average, equities analysts expect that McDonald's Co. will post 12.25 earnings per share for the current year.

McDonald's Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $1.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $7.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. McDonald's's dividend payout ratio is currently 62.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Christopher J. Kempczinski sold 10,500 shares of McDonald's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.05, for a total value of $3,255,525.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 32,756 shares in the company, valued at $10,155,997.80. The trade was a 24.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Tiffanie L. Boyd sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.27, for a total transaction of $309,270.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,564 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,720,778.28. This represents a 15.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 32,405 shares of company stock valued at $9,886,656 over the last ninety days. 0.23% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MCD has been the subject of a number of research reports. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of McDonald's from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of McDonald's from $336.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of McDonald's from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Bank of America raised their price target on McDonald's from $312.00 to $316.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, TD Securities reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $300.00 price objective on shares of McDonald's in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $323.61.

McDonald's Company Profile

McDonald's Corp. engages in the operation and franchising of restaurants. It operates through the following segments: U.S., International Operated Markets, and International Developmental Licensed Markets and Corporate. The U.S. segment focuses its operations on the United States. The International Operated Markets segment consists of operations and the franchising of restaurants in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and the U.K.